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"Thb path of the just is as thb shining light, that 

8HINBTH MOBS AND MORE UNTO THB PERFECT DAY." PBOVBRBS 

iv: 18. 

SUCH a light is George Washington. 
Bead again the story of his life ; hear 
once more from his lips the declara- 
tion of his deep convictions ; listen to his 
wise counsel and to his prophecies con- 
cerning America's future; and you will 
be amazed at the light which shines from 
Washington upon that fateful path on 
which his countrymen are marching to- 
day. 

During his term as president the condi- 
tions in Europe resembled those now ex- 
isting. To use Washington's phrase, "the 
whole world was in an uproar." His ad- 
ministration began as the French Eevolu- 
tion commenced. Then the Bastile was 
stormed, a Paris mob rushed to Versailles, 
and the king was dragged to the Tuil- 
leries, a prisoner. While Washington 

* A sermon preached by the Rev. Ernest M. Stires, D.D., on Febru- 
ary 17, 1018, in the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, in com- 
memoration of the birth of George Washington. 



»63 

was guiding the destinies of a new nation 
dedicated to liberty and law, the govern- 
ment of France was seized by Marat, 
Danton and Kobespierre. Keligion was 
scorned, and unbridled license masked as 
reason had been worshipped in the form 
of an unclad woman enthroned upon the 
altar of Notre Dame. 

When you recall Washington's prob- 
lems as a soldier, statesman and presi- 
dent, when you live over again with him 
the first precarious years of this republic, 
and see with his eyes the condition of 
Europe, you will understand how reason- 
able it is to expect light from Washington 
for our day, and you will be prepared to 
heed his message. 

Few of the great men of the past have 
had the good fortune to hear their great- 
ness acclaimed while yet they walked the 
earth. Fewer still have had that rare 
earthly immortality of a steadily increas- 
ing fame. History binds these two gar- 
lands on the brow of Washington. Today 
his fame is as secure from detraction as it 
is beyond man's power adequately to 
honor. The ablest statesmen of England, 
the men against whom he fought, among 
them the brilliant elder Chatham, des- 
cribed him in glowing words the like of 
which has been applied to no other man. 
If we are to limit ourselves, for the mo- 

2 



ment, to a single tribute to Washington 
let it be that picture which Thackeray 
draws for us in "The Virginians" : 

"The chief of a nation in arms, doing 
battle with distracted parties; calm in 
the midst of conspiracy; serene against 
the open foe before him and the darker 
enemies at his back; Washington inspir- 
ing order and spirit into troops hungry 
and in rags; stung by ingratitude, but 
betraying no anger, and ever ready to for- 
give; in defeat invincible, magnanimous 
in conquest, and never so sublime as on 
that day when he laid down his victorious 
sword and sought his noble retirement — 
here indeed is a character to admire and 
revere, a life without a stain, a fame with- 
out a flaw." 

This is a unique description of moral 
grandeur. I^o one has claimed for Wash- 
ington the brilliant intellectual gifts of 
Hamilton or Jefferson, yet these men have 
eloquently recorded their wonder, their 
admiration and their confidence in their 
leader's wise decisions. To Washington 
the universe revealed a God of law and 
order; human history demonstrated the 
working and the power of moral law, the 
development of a divine purpose. To this 
law he submitted with rigid self-disci- 
pline, and to the fulfilment of the divine 
plan he consecrated himself. Every great 



problem lie referred to that high supreme 
court Avhich was always in session in his 
soul, and when he received and announced 
the decision the intellectuals and the 
"practical" statesmen were amazed yet 
convinced. 

Says a historian of Virginia, "After serv- 
ice one Sunday morning, in the summer of 
1774, surrounded by the congregation, 
every one of whom he well knew, Washing- 
ton advocated withdrawing allegiance 
from King George, and stated that he 
would fight to uphold the independence of 
the Colonies. No more solemn time or occa- 
sion could have been chosen. With calm- 
ness, in a spirit of prayerful deliberation, 
he announced his momentous decision 
under the very shadow of the church. 
Nine years after, when that independence 
had been sucessfully established and the 
long-contested fight so bravely won, hav- 
ing resigned his commission at Annapolis, 
he was free to turn his face toward home. 
His arrival at Mount Vernon was on 
Christmas Eve. The next day found him 
once more in his accustomed seat in the 
church at Alexandria to hear the tender 
message of peace and good will that was 
proclaimed like liberty throughout the 
land, and no one bowed in deeper grati- 
tude than the great general, who came 
as humbly as a little child to this, his 



Father's House/' (Dr. Clark's "Colonial 
Churclies of Virginia.") 

For four months Washington presided 
at the sessions of the Constitutional Con- 
vention in Philadelphia, and in those four 
months he spoke but once and briefly. Yet 
the brilliant members of that Convention 
have recorded that the quiet force of that 
silent man was greater than any other in 
the framing and adoption of the Constitu- 
tion. Before the convention assembled he 
had expressed to a friend the hope of his 
heart, and said "Let us raise a standard 
to which the wise and honest can repair. 
The event is in the hands of God." In the 
atmosphere of that brooding prayer our 
Constitution was born. 

The fiirst inaugural address is unsur- 
passed in literature for lofty idealism. 
In it we read that "the foundation of our 
national policy will be laid in the pure 
and immutable principles of private mor- 
ality . . .;" that '^ there exists in the 
economy and course of nature an indis- 
soluble union between virtue and happi- 
ness, between duty and advantage, be- 
tween the genuine maxims of an honest 
and magnanimous policy and the solid re- 
wards of public prosperity and felicity;" 
and a declaration of faith in " the eternal 
rules of order and right which Heaven it- 
self has ordained." 



It is not strange that God used this man 
of moral vision and courage for the ful- 
filment of essential parts of His plan for 
mankind. We can understand Gladstone 
declaring that he almost idolized Wash- 
ington, and that he considered him "the 
purest figure in history." As we look up- 
on that figure he seems to grow to heroic 
proportions ; we become more conscious of 
America's debt to him; indeed, there 
comes a sense of personal obligation. We 
have gathered here to acknowledge that 
debt. Here in a house of God which is to 
be the greatest cathedral of the Western 
hemisphere ; here with patriots who have 
consecrated themselves to the duty of 
keeping alive the sacred fire upon the 
altar of our country, we have assembled 
to pay tribute to Washington. This we 
owe not only to him, but to the genera- 
tions that shall follow. But we have also 
come for a greater purpose, — to hear his 
message for America in this hour of des- 
tiny. 

You will not find it difficult to believe 
that Washington has been following with 
intense interest every phase of the prob- 
lem which his country has been facing for 
more than three and a half years. It may 
be you would not find it hard to think of 
him in France today, at Lafayette's side, 
where perhaps God has permitted him to 



serve from the beginning. It would not be 
surprising if the spirit of Washington 
was the first American enlisted in a con- 
test which involved not merely the free- 
dom of a nation but the freedom of a 
world. 

He was never a moral neutral. Patient 
with ignorance, he blazed with indigna- 
tion at injustice, cruelty or disloyalty. He 
was a man of high decision, endeavoring 
to know the mind of God, and having de- 
termined for himself the moral character 
of a crisis, he acted at once with intelli- 
gence, courage and force. We may be sure 
he has sympathy for those in authority; 
that he recognizes the weight of responsi- 
bility; that he understands that often it 
is hard to determine quickly what ought 
to be done. IN'evertheless he would re- 
mind America that the faith of her 
fathers, the ideals which gave her birth 
and are her life, the marvelous way in 
which God has fashioned a great people 
out of a score of nationalities, place an 
obligation upon this country for moral 
leadership, not for reluctant following. He 
would bid us see clearly the vast world- 
problems which must soon be determined 
by justice, sympathy, and a respect for 
the essential foundations of civilization 
and human happiness. But he would also 
urge us to be aware of our own perils. He 



would have us deal justly with every class 
of our citizens, but he would have us deal 
roundly with either capital or labor if it 
sought a selfish advantage because of the 
country's need, willing to imperil a great 
cause, and to coin the blood of heroes into 
traitorous gain. 

Surely Washington would call us to be 
a people of high decisions, of moral pur- 
*pose and prompt action. A historian of 
our own time makes a comment upon the 
Farewell Address which possesses unique 
significance, as that historian is now 
President of the United States. Says Mr. 
Wilson, "The circumstances which had 
given his services a temporary value, he 
told them, were passed; they had now a 
unified and national government, which 
might serve them for great ends. He ex- 
horted them to preserve it intact, and not 
to degrade it in the using; to put down 
party spirit, make religion, education, 
and good faith the guides and safeguards 
of their government, and keep it national 
and their own by excluding foreign in- 
fluences and entanglements. 'Twas a 
noble document. No thoughtful man could 
read it without emotion, knowing how it 
spoke in all its solemn sentences the great 
character of the man whose career was 
ended." 



So wrote the man who is president today. 
May the virtues of Washington still abide 
in the White House; a patriotism above 
party or personal advantage; an execu- 
tive ability which guides without compul- 
sion, and controls without destroying, a 
wisdom which can learn and which sur- 
rounds itself with the wise and capable; 
a complete devotion to the honor and pros- 
perity of the nation; an abiding faith in 
a God of wisdom, love and justice ; and a 
reasonable respect for all the groups of 
men who are striving loyally for our na- 
tional progress. In this momentous hour 
Washington would bid his fellow-country- 
men to stand upon high ground, and to 
make wise, courageous and prompt deci- 
sions. 

The second note in Washington's mes- 
sage would be that of calm confidence in 
the result of our high decisions. By our 
faith in God, by our memory of many bless- 
ings and the reward of loyalty in the 
past, the man who knelt in the snow at 
Valley Forge and committed himself and 
his starved, ragged, frozen men to the God 
of nations for the fulfilment of His pur- 
pose, bids us never to doubt, never to 
slacken, and to maintain with increased 
glory America's fame for carrying on to 
completion whatever she feels it her duty 
to begin ! Should dark hours come, should 



some grow timid and doubtful, let the 
calm confidence of the man of Valley 
Forge bring them back to themselves and 
to the service of their country. 

There is one other note in Washington's 
message, as we hear it today. It is the 
note of optimism for the future of this na- 
tion and its influence upon the world. 
Even in the beginning he was quite cer- 
tain that God was developing America for 
moral leadership, and in a letter to Lafay- 
ette he predicted her vast wealth and 
power. He would fill us with gratitude, 
courage and hope. He would have us 
see our destiny as he sees it, then for 
our task put on the whole armour of God, 
and confidently expect the fulfilment of 
a divine plan. This is his message to us at 
this solemn moment; that we be men of 
high decisions, calm confidence, and of 
hopeful vision for the future. 

The better we know Washington the 
more certain are we of his rejoicing 
today. He can afford to forget his dis- 
appointment at our delays in his happi- 
ness that we answered the call, that we 
know we are in a holy war, and that the 
fiower of American manhood in France, 
on the sea, or ready to go, are of a quality 
to make even the soul of Washington glow 
with pride. He expects of them great 
things ; he will not be disappointed. 

You who are gathered here do not need 

10 

5 



to be told that you are the custodians of 
the high ideals for which our armies will 
fight. Here on American soil will be fought 
one of the greatest battles of the war 
— a spiritual contest for the purpose of 
bringing the body with its passions and 
selfish ambitions into subjection to the 
soul of a patriot. Then our returning vic- 
torious heroes will face not a people heavy 
with sordid desires, but a people renewed 
like themselves, and ready to work with 
them for the rebuilding of the world. 
Washington would hid you to 'prepare for 
this at once. 

In olden times there was an interesting 
service called the Feast of Lights. The 
church would be filled at night with a 
great multitude, each person carrying an 
unlighted candle. At a given signal every 
light in the church was extinguished ex- 
cept one light on the altar. Then the 
priest would advance with this light to 
lighten others, and these would kindle 
others, until in a few moments the 
whole building would blaze with light. 
Then every man and woman went home, 
lighted through the darkness by the beam 
which the altar-light had kindled. The an- 
cient custom easily impresses its meaning 
upon our hearts. But it has an added sig- 
nificance for us today. We have been con- 
templating gratefully the brightest light 

11 



in our historj^ ; "the path of the just is as 
the shining light, that shineth more and 
more unto the perfect day." Surely we 
are ready to kindle our torches of patriot- 
ism at the clear, steady light of Washing- 
ton, gaining new inspiration and courage 
for the sublimest tasks ever offered to 
man. 

An American who recently returned 
from France described an interesting con- 
versation with Marshal Joffre, in the 
course of which the great soldier drew 
from his pocket a letter written by a 
French mother to her son living in Can- 
ada, and with unsteady voice he read : 

"My dear boy : 
You will be grieved to learn that your 
two brothers have been killed. Their 
country needed them and they gave every- 
thing they had to save her. Your country 
needs you, and while I am not going to 
suggest that you return to fight for 
France, I will only say if you do not come 
at once, never come." 

A man must answer the call of this hour 
or lose his soul. Kindle your torches, men 
and women, let no one fail or falter. Fol- 
lowing our beloved Captain, inspired by 
the devotion of our brave lads, encom- 
passed by a host of heavenly witnesses, 
one of them our Washington, we go to 
claim a patriot's share in the holy war. 

wa4 






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